John O'Connor is in his sixth season as an assistant coach on Fran O'Hanlon's staff. In 2012-13, O'Connor returned to Lafayette for his second stint as an assistant after previously serving as O'Hanlon's assistant for three seasons from 2001-04, two of which were as the top assistant.

O'Connor was instrumental in helping return Lafayette to the Patriot League Championship Final in 2012-13, one win away from a berth in the NCAA Tournament. The Leopards finished the season second in the Patriot League regular season and posted a 19-15 overall record.

He left Lafayette in 2004 for Georgia Tech where he became the director of basketball operations and later an assistant coach under Paul Hewitt, spending six seasons (2004-10) in Atlanta. O'Connor left Georgia Tech in April of 2010 to become the head coach at Holy Family University. After his time at Holy Family, O'Connor worked and travelled with USA Basketball's Under-19 team coached by Hewitt which competed in the world championships in Latvia in the summer of 2011. O'Connor also spent time coaching youth basketball and training professional players during the NBA lockout.

O'Connor spent eight years (1993-2001) as an assistant at Drexel where he helped guide the Dragons' basketball program to three NCAA Tournament appearances and two NIT berths. O'Connor worked as the top assistant coach for three years, two under Steve Seymour and one under Bill Herrion.

In his time at Drexel, the men's program played in five America East Conference Tournament championship games in eight seasons. O'Connor helped develop 22 All-League players in his tenure, seven of which were first-team selections. At Drexel, he implemented a computerized recruiting program and worked primarily with both frontcourt and perimeter players.

Prior to joining the Drexel coaching staff, O'Connor served as an administrative assistant at Villanova University, working with Steve Lappas who was in his first season with the Wildcats' program.

O'Connor graduated from Penn State in 1983 with a bachelor's degree in Exercise Physiology. While attending the University Park campus, he also earned his teaching certification.

In recent years, O'Connor has spent time coaching three different age groups in the Sonny Hill Basketball League. Additionally, he spent one season (1988-89) as the head freshman coach at Bishop McDevitt High School and also served as the assistant varsity and head junior varsity coach at Germantown Academy from 1987-89.

O'Connor, a native of Philadelphia, is married to the former Fay McColl.

Lafayette Athletics, as a partner in the mission of the College, provides an incredibly effective learning experience for student-athletes through competitive NCAA Division I athletics. Lafayette sponsors 23 varsity sports with more than 600 student-athletes.